The Official Mission
by tayababy
Summary: ON HIATUS! Voyager's crew is returning under new orders on a new ship, but everything doesn't go as planned, please r
1. Change of Plans

**Hey all, sorry I took so long to write something new. This story is set some time after the original return of Voyager, commonly refered to as Endgame. Also, if there are any spelling mistakes, please don't hesitate to email me, my laptop is being mean to me and I have to use wordpad, so I don't have a spellchecker. **

**Disclaimer: No matter how much we kick, scream, cry or throw temper tantrums, Voyager _still_ belongs to Paramount, as do all the characters, except for the ones I invented, whom you will meet later. In other words, Paramount is too lazy to make a movie, so l think it is out duty as fans to play with them, manipulate them and speculate what _should_ happen after Endgame.**

**Have fun, remember, reviews make me write faster, if I don't have any exams.**

The Official Mission Chapter 1 - Change of Plans

The senior staff of the newly commissioned USS Voyager-A met in the briefing room off the right side of the Bridge. They sat around an oval table, the captain taking her position at the head.

"To my new crew, I would like to say welcome. To my previous crew, welcome back. I know we have had a tough year, with hearings, promotions and waiting for our new ship to come off the assembly line, but these events have strenghthened us. Now, for the intorductions," she nodded to the two new senior officers sitting at the table. "Our new counsellor, Commander Abigail Peters, and our new Chief Security Officer, Lieutenant Scott Marman, meet Commander Chakotay, Lieutenant Commanders Tom Paris and B'Elanna Torres, Lieutenant Harry Kim, Ensign Annika Hansen and our Doctor." Captain Kathryn Janeway, while 4 months pregnant, introduced her new officers to her 'family'. They were all missing Tuvok, his calm, stoic Vulcan presence normally soothing the crew's nerves, but he was on Vulcan with his family, recovering after the neurological disease he contracted had been healed.

She looked around, studying her officer's faces. Her husband, Chakotay, looked back at her in the eyes, giving her the upmost confidence in her new mission. Paris and Torres were discussing their one-year-old daughter, Miral, with the counsellor, a woman who had come highly reccomened from Admiral Owen Paris himself. Harry, Sev - no, Annika, were talking with the doctor and Lieutenant Marman about something to do with the Astro - no, Stellar Cartograohy, lab. Gee, she thought, getting used to everyone and everything's new names was going to be fun.

Kathryn's attention was brought back into focus when an internal communicator chirped. "Nursery to Paris and Torres"

"Torres here, what's wrong Ensign Adams?" B'Elanna asked over the comm link, obvious worry present in her voice. As a mother, she didn't want anything to happen to her firstborn, and currently only, daughter.

"Commander Torres, Miral has woken up from her nap and is screaming the place down. I can't get anywhere near her and if she doesn't stop soon, she'll wake up Mattie, and Lieutenant Wildman said her son wasn't to be woken up until later..." the ensign was going to continue, but Tom interrupted her.

"Ensign Adams, one of us will be right down to get her. Paris Out," Tom Paris looked apologetically at Kathryn, receiving a look of understanding, then stood up, not before kissing B'Elanna on the cheek, and walked out of the room to pick up his screaming daughter.

After the doors behind him closed, Captain Janeway looked around at the people sitting around her. The people she had grown to love as a family, even the two new people she was hoping to adopt into her already-large family. "OK, people, time to get down to business, B'Elanna, how's our engines?"

B'Elanna looked completely at home talkng about Engineering. "Well, Captain, our new warp core is operating at peak officiency, just waiting for me to improve it like the last one I had in contact with..." She trailed off and the entire congregation laughed.

"OK, then," the Captain chuckled. "Mr Marman, how are the security teams coming along with their training?" She looked at one of the two new members of her crew.

"Well, Captain, Alpha and Beta teams are going well, and the Hazard team are adapting to their change in leadership as well as can be expected. I don't know if I have the same reputation or trust as they had with Lieutenant Commander Tuvok, but I aim to please.." Scott Marman trailed off his speech with a giggle, but didn't receive one in return. Obviously, you had to truly be one of the family to be understood completely.

"Mr Kim, how is our new ship looking?"

"Captain, all systems are fully operational, all running at peak efficency. Even the new holodecks, have you seen them? They are great! And the library. Sandrines, Fair Haven and all our old programs are already installed, as well as lots of new ones. Just wait and see, Captain Proton will be flying around the corridors once again when Tom finds out where we hid it." The room burst into laughter once more, with the exception of Abigail and Scott, who had no idea what Harry was talking about.

At that moment, Tom Paris chose to re-enter the briefing room, Miral in his arms. "What did you hide from me, Harry?" he asked, bringing the attention to himself and his baby girl.

"Mama!" Miral burst out, reaching for B'Elanna. B'Elanna reached up to take the toddler from her husband's arms before she escaped his grip.

"Now that you're back, Mr Paris, how are you finding the new flight controls?"

"They're great. Handle like a dream, in theory, of course. By the way, how many Delta Flyer class shuttles do we have, along with our other shuttles?"

Chakotay chose this time to speak up, "Tom, we have 3 DF-class shuttles, as well as the original Delta Flyer, 2 type-two's, 2 type-three's and 2 prototype Runabout-mini's. The Captain's Yacht is also in our shuttle compliment, so we have more than enough small spacecraft. But that does NOT mean we can go around crashing and destroying shuttles at the same rate we did in the Delta Quadrant. I don't think Starfleet will appreciate us destroying that many shuttles when we are actually in regular contact with them." The officers laughed again, remembering how many shuttles they had managed to crash the seven years before. Once again, Abigail and Scott looked at eachother, not understanding the 'family' joke happeneing around them.

"OK guys," Kathryn Janeway looked around again, "Our mission, this next four years at least, is to the outskirts of the Delta Quadrant, yet again, through the Beta Quadrant. We may be able to get in touch with Neelix again, I hear he and Dexa were married around the time Chakotay and I were," it was no secret that the command pair had been an item for many years, finally confessing their love shortly after their original homecoming.

"Get to the point!" Tom Paris broke the tension in the air with his sarcastic remark. This was met with a death glare he was used to.

"Our orders are to scout the border between quadrants, on a strictly diplomatic objective, and make any first contacts as we missed with our shortcut home. We are supposed to be scouting out new races for future diplomatic missions. If we are lucky, we may even have a transwarp or slipstream drive waiting for us when we return. We depart 0900 hours tomorrow, and all crew must have reported in by 0700 hours tomorrow, or else they are left behind. I expect all systems to be operating at 100 by no later than 0700. I hope you are all settled in to your new quarters with your respective partners," with this comment she gave a look to the Paris family, Harry Kim and Annika Hansen, who had been dating for some time now. She and Chakotay received stern looks in return, making everyone smile, sharing a family moment.

"Captain, we are receiving a message from Starfleet Command," Ensign Parkins' voice came over the comm from the bridge.

"Thank you, Ensign, put it through to the briefing room. Janeway out." She looked around at the members of her senior staff. "OK, everyone, dismissed."

The crewmembers all rose and walked out of the briefing room with their CO's dismissal, exiting onto the bridge.

"Computer, play message," she ordered the compouter once Chakotay had left the room after everyone else.

The figure of Rear Admiral Paris filled the screen. "Owen," she said to her friend. "What can I do for you at this time of night?" It was 2100 hours already, well past dark on Earth and well into the night shift in Voyager-A. Normally, she and her senior staff would be on the holoodeck in Sandrine's or somewhere new Mr Paris had invented.

Owen Paris had a worried look on his face when he replied to his former protege. "Kathryn, I'm afraid there has been a change in plans with your assignment."

"Oh, really," she said, obvious worry and confusion present in both her voice and facial expression. "What is the nature of our change of plans?" she asked, taking sass from the doctor's book.

Owen smiled at Kathryn's attempt at humour. Though she was only 4 months pregnant, her body had already started to take the strain of the pregnancy. "Kathryn, I'm afraid you won't be leaving drydock as planned tomorrow morning. SCE has managed to create a completely functional transwarp prototype engine. It was made especially for use on the Voyager-A. It should take approximately 10 days to install and another 10 days after that to test the engine give or take. I'm sorry, Kathryn, but it looks like you won't be leaving for atleast another month yet."

The look on Kathryn's face told Owen everything he needed to know. This expectant mother and stubborn Captain didn't take kindly to changes in plans. She was upset about this. Spending another month on Earth meant another month she would spend out of the Captain's chair when the time came for her child to be born. She looked upset, almost depressed.

"I'm sorry, Kathryn..." was the last thing she heard before she terminated the comm link.

TBC

AN: I hope you like this one, remember, reviews are my inspiration, without them I am nothing. Well, almost nothing.


	2. Breaking the News

**Thanks to everyone for your reviews, they have inspired me. I apologise in advance if I take a while to update anything, my block exams are this week.**

**Disclaimer: No matter how much we kick, scream, cry or throw temper tantrums, Voyager _still_ belongs to Paramount, as do all the characters, except for the ones I invented, whom you will meet later. In other words, Paramount is too lazy to make a movie, so l think it is out duty as fans to play with them, manipulate them and speculate what _should_ happen after Endgame.**

**Have fun, remember, reviews make me write faster, if I don't have any exams.**

The Official Mission Chapter 2 - Breaking the News

Kathryn walked onto the Bridge from the Briefing Room to break the news to her senior staff, the only officers, other than a skeleton crew, who were actually on duty and residing on the ship.

As she crossed the Bridge to her command chair in the centre, the First Officer's on her right of the deck behind Helm and Ops, she was taking in the new layout of the command centre of the ship. It almost resembled the Bridge of her previous ship. Almost. But on her new Bridge, Ops and Helm stations were just about the same console in front of the viewscreen and the Engineering and Science stations lined the back wall of the Bridge. Stellar Cartography and Tactical/Security was on the deck directly above the command chairs. The Counsellor had a small stationto the left of the door to her Ready Room, directly opposite the Briefing Room, in the same place it was on the previous Voyager.

"Everyone, I have something to tell you..." she started, looking around at her staff with a sad and depressed look on her face.

"What, Kathryn?" Chakotay asked her. "Does it have something to do with the call that came through for you?"

"Yeah, Captain. Who did call you anyway?" Tom Paris asked her from his seat at the conn.

"OK, you all know that I may be restricted to quarters during the final weeks of my pregnancy, right?" She asked.

B'Elanna nodded and everyone else agreed. "I would have been confined when I was pregnant with Miral, but she was stubborn and I was forced to walk around on duty to, let me say, _encourage_ her to enter the world. I think if I was bed-ridden, Tom would have killed either me or himself out of frustration and anger." The staff in the room laughed at the last sentence. "Sorry, Tom," B'Elanna said to her husband between giggles.

"Well, anyway," Kathryn said as she was chuckling, "The Doctor has said I most probably will be out of action for around a month, atleast two weeks on either side of my child's birth." A nod of agreement went around the Bridge, all who knew her closely agreeing with her. "OK, so the call that was sent to me, it was from Admiral Paris, Tom's father, at Starfleet Command. He had some bad news for us."

The crew watched as their Commanding Officer squirmed where she was standing. She was obviously uncomfortable with the news she was about to break to them, Abigail thought. As the new ship's counsellor, even to a crew that was so used to not having a counsellor, she had to evaluate and interpret the body language of all the officers, including their beloved Captain.

"Come on, spill the beans!" Tom Paris exclaimed, and the crew laughed again, this time at his expense.

"OK, OK then, since you insist Mr Paris," Kathryn Janeway said, chuckles still present in her voice. "The news is depressing," her tone immediately sobered. "The SCE have managed to create a completely functional prototype transwarp engine. They have expressed their interest, or should I say, they have had HQ order the installation of the engine on our ship, since it was made especially for use on Voyager-A. So, Admiral Paris has told me we will not be leaving drydock tomorrow morning, but the ship will be staying here for atleast another month. We have been asked to return to Earth until she is ready to leave. It also means another month I will spend out of the command chair when our mission does take flight. We don't have any say in this, so, Mr Paris, don't go appealing to your father abouth this, because we all know you want to, but we will be planetside for another month, whether we like it or not."

The room immediately sobered, all traces of laughter, happiness and family togetherness dissapearing in an instant.

"Owen has implied that Commander Torres have atleast her main Engineering team stay back here at Utopia Planetia to assist with the installation of the new engine and, if Tom can hack it, have her stay here to supervise it. Everyone else has been asked to stay in an appartment building purposely vacated for our entire crew if they have no where on Earth they currently reside at." Her tone was glum as she told her family their predicament.

"But!" "What?" "How can they..?"


	3. Discussions

**Thanks to everyone for your reviews, they have inspired me. I apologise in advance if I take a while to update anything, my block exams are this week. And I'm sorry this chapter is so long, I couldn't figure out when to end it.**

**Disclaimer: No matter how much we kick, scream, cry or throw temper tantrums, Voyager _still_ belongs to Paramount, as do all the characters, except for the ones I invented, whom you will meet later. In other words, Paramount is too lazy to make a movie, so l think it is out duty as fans to play with them, manipulate them and speculate what _should_ happen after Endgame.**

**Have fun, remember, reviews make me write faster, if I don't have any exams. Please include any spelling mistakes in those reviews, since my laptop still hates me.**

The Offical Mission Chapter 3 - Discussions

The skeleton crew of the USS Voyager-A exited thier new ship throught the airlock and walked back onto the Utopia Planetia docking port in depressed moods. The crew who were supposed to be reporting to duty the next morning had already been contacted and told oftheir new situation. Needless to say their responses were about the same of those of the senior officers - everyone had been keen to return to space again as a family.

"OK, everyone!" thought she was 4 months pregnant, Kathryn Janeway could still throw her voice over a crowd and be clearly heard. The people in front of her immediately fell silent in respect of the woman they had been commanded by for just over 7 years.

"Everyone, the 7 year journey home made us a family. Now that we have spent almost a year back on Earth, I know everyone is eager to return to the depths of space once again. Our family seems only to be truly at home on Voyager, and now she has been taken away from us for another month. As you all know, SCE has created a transwarp drive specifically for the use on our new ship. The installation of this prototype will keep us planetside for another month, so I hope to see everyone back up here to report for duty at 0800 hours on June 9, Earth time. Good luck, wish your families well for me." After her speech, Kathryn Janeway turned on her heel and walked, Chakotay by her side, towards the private transport vessel waiting for them, leaving their depressed crew behind.

"Very nice speech, Kath," Chakotay said to his wife, calling her by her shortened name only in private. "Do you think Tom and B'Elanna will stay, head planetside or split up?"

Kathryn looked at her husband, the love of her life, and told him her thoughts. "Chakotay, I honestly think Tom and B'Elanna will both stay here, and I won't be surprised if Miral comes to expect a sibling in the next year, they have spent so much time apart, and will with the transwarp installation. B'Elanna would be happier with another child, I think. Plus, it would give our new nursery attendant something to do during the day."

"Yes, it would get a little bit boring with only Miral and Mattie in there, don't you think?"

Their conversation was interrupted by the shuttlecraft's launch, and unnamed ensign sitting at the controls of the small vessel. Kathryn and Chakotay sat together in eachother's arms, his hands stroking her slightly swollen abdomen. Kathryn looked into her hubands eyes, intense love filling his senses. "I love you so much," Chakotay whispered to his wife. "More than you'll ever know."

Tom and B'Elanna were settled into their large family-sized officers quarters on Voyager, Miral asleep in her bedroom.

"You know, flyboy," B'Elanna stared into her husband's eyes. "I think it is time for Miral to have a sibling, don't you?"

"I like the way you think, Maquis," he said. "Should we start now?"

"Is that a trick question?" B'Elanna asked, leading Tom to their bedroom, then falling backwards onto their bed, her husband in her arms. "Computer, minimal lighting."

A complying beep and the lights in their quarters dimmed considerably, leaving husband and wife content in eachothers grip. Unbeknownst (I think that's the right word) to them, B'Elanna was already two months pregnant.

Harry Kim and Annika Hansen walked into the quarters they shared on Voyager, their new home, the beginnning of their life together. As they looked around, Annika saw a small regeneration unit in the corner, for emergencies. Since she had changed her name, had most of her visable implants removed and gained the ability to sleep, Annika admitted her love for Harry Kim.

"Honey, come over here and sit down on this lovely couch." Harry led his girlfriend over to the Starfleet-issue grey couch and sat down next to eachother. "I have something to ask you."

The ex-Borg sat down next to her human boyfriend, expecting a conversation and maybe a kiss.

"Annika, I have loved you ever since I first met you properly. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, I want you be do the honour of becoming my wife." There, he thought, it was out. He had asked her to marry him.

"Oh, Harry," she gushed, kissing him passionately. "Yes, yes I will be your wife. Yes I will marry you."

"Oh, I love you." He kissed her again, then they left to spend their month on the planet together.

Abigail Peters and Scott Marman walked througth the corridors of Utopia Planetia together, towards the transport which would take them back to Earth. As they reached the docking port of the class-4 transport vessel, their ship's Engineerin teams stepped through the port and headed towards Voyager to install the new transwarp system.

"Abby, Scott, you can board the transport with us if you like," came the voice of Stellar Cartographist Lieutenant Samantha Wildman and her husband Lieutenant Joe Carey. Naomi Wildman, Sam's half-Ktarian daughter, was sitting next to the couple.

The new counsellor and security chief each smiled at the offer made by the two officers, and sat down on the seats behind them. The five people spent the entire journey to Earth talking about the original Voyager, and everything that happened in the meeting that morning the new pair didn't understand. It was the biginning of a new friendship, between the Deptuy Chief Engineer, Deputy Chief of Stellar Cartography, Chief Counsellor and Chief Security Officer.

The two hour journey was well spent by Voyager's commanding officers. The slept in eachother's arms, only to wake when the shuttle landed at Starfleet Command in San Francisco. The pair walked into the building and made their way straight to Kathryn's office. The official Delta Quadrant ambassador for Starfleet deserved her own office, and a permanent apartment on the waterfront.

When the couple reached the office, they immediately fell asleep on the couch together once again, and didn't leave the office for the next ten days.

The installation of the transwarp drive took ten days as planned, with B'Elanna, Vorik and the Alpha Engineering team helping the SCE. By day, they would manouver around the existing warp core, integrating the new system with their old ones. By night, the crew would go back to their quarters with their families. B'Elanna, though totally occupied every minute of the day with either her husband and daughter or the intallation of the transwarp drive, started to miss being pregnant, miss the feeling of being relied on for the growth of an unborn child. Her attention, though supposed to be focused on the new faster-than-light system in front of her, was wandering back to her quarters where her family was, and where she and Tom were thinking of another child. Actually, come to think of it, they were more than thinking.

The sound of an alarm brought Lieutenant Commander B'Elanna Torres back to the Main Engineering section of Voyager. The transwarp drive had just been installed and not tested yet. What could possibly go wrong? "What the hell is going on!" she yelled, mainly directing her wrath at the SCE team who were responsible for 'messing up' her domain.

The lieutenant from SCE looked at the Chief Engineer's angry face, she was obviously looking for someone to blame for the cause of the problem. "I'm sorry, Commander," he started. "Ensign Collins just needs to realign the dilithium matrix and connect it to the transwarp system and Ensign Roberts is interconnecting the anti-matter chambers between the two drives. Someone must have been trying to break the security codes and access the main computer core or ships systems." He was not used to serving below a female officer, so Lieutenant Jacob Kensington was almost fearful of what Commander Torres would do to him.

"Well, _Lieutenant_ Kensington, why don't you go and see what they have done to _my_ ship!" B'Elanna's Klingon cranial ridges were starting to glow bright red, a sure sign of her agrivation. She truned on her heel and walked straight over to the console next to the warp core, then one of the main consoles lining the walls, checking each of them as she passed to weed out the problem.

She was interrupted by the computer alerting her of an incoming transmission. "Computer play message," she called into thin air.

Annika Hansen's attractive face appeared on a small screen above the console she was currently working at. Now void of all Borg implants, her face was more attractive than ever. "Annika," she said to her friend and crewmate. "What can I do for you?"

The ex-Borg looked into the eyes of the friend she needed. "B'Elanna, I was wondering... is there anything I can do on Voyager to help? I am feeling very incomfortable on Earth with nothing to do." Her eyes and voice had a pleading tone to them. "Please?"

B'Elanna thought for a moment. It was sort of boring up on Voyager with only Vorik to keep her company during the day. maybe a distraction, a fresh set of hands, would be helpful. "Sure, Annika. When can we expect you?" she asked.

"I can be there within the hour. Is that OK with you? I really need someone to talk to at the moment." Her tone was so hopeful, it was a relief to hear her agreement and consent.

"That's perfectly fine. Is Harry coming with you?" She saw her face fall almost instantly as she mentioned her boyfriend. "Sorry," she said, immediately sorry for bringing up the subject.

"No, he's staying planetside with his family. I'll see you in an hour, OK?" she ended the transmission before B'Elanna could reply. She couldn't help but wondering if the couple had had a fight.


	4. Back Underway

**Sorry it has taken so long to update this story, I am currently in the middle of writing atleast 6 different stories, two or three of which havent been published yet, so bear with me if the chapter isn't as long as the others or is longer!**

**Disclaimer: No matter how much we kick, scream, cry or throw temper tantrums, Voyager _still_ belongs to Paramount, as do all the characters, except for the ones I invented, whom you will meet later. In other words, Paramount is too lazy to make a movie, so l think it is out duty as fans to play with them, manipulate them and speculate what _should_ happen after Endgame.**

The Offical Mission Chapter 4 - Back Underway

The installation of the transwarp drive on Voyager took the month set aside. Under the watchful eye of Lieutenant Commander B'Elanna Torres, Main Engineering, and the rest of the ship, had not been 'messed up' by the SCE installation team.

Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay were just about to depart Starfleet Command in the Captain's yacht, chiristened _Asterie_, when the happy couple were interrupted by Admiral Owen Paris, an old friend of hte Voyager family, and Tom Paris's father.

"Kathryn, Chakotay," he said in greeting, shaking the Commander's hand after kissing his wife's cheek lightly. "Sorry to delay your return to the ship, but before you left, I just have to introduce to you an old friend of mine, and your new nursery attendant, Ensign Isabella Crusher."

A young pair of Ensigns stepped out from behind the Admiral to stand infront of the couple.

"Crusher?" Janeway asked, recognising the name from the Enterprise.

"Yes, ma'am," Isabella said to her new CO and XO. "I am the daughter-in-law of Doctor Beverly Crusher, from Jean-Luc Picard's Enterprise." The young man standing beside her had a wide grin on his face, he was obviously very proud of the young woman.

"And you are?" Chakotay said to the male ensign, thinking his facial features looked strangely familiar.

"I am Ensign Wesley Crusher, sir, reporting for duty aboard the Starship Voyager as a pilot and engineering assistant. I believe you have been expectingme and my new wife..." his voice trailed off, waiting for recognition from his new commanders.

Kathryn and Chakotay looked at eachother with confused looks on their faces.

"But what about Ensign Adams, she's been our Chief in the nursery since commission. And Tom won't be happy with another equally skilled pilot at his helm..." Captain Janeway was worried. She had come to trust Ensign Adams, ready to leave her baby in the Ensign's care after the birth.

"Well, Captain, Ensign Adams put in a request for an assistant in the nursery, because of reasons I can't disclose to you yet..." Owen looked apologetically at his protege, knowing her emotions were fragile during pregnancy.

"And let me guess, you can't disclose Mr Crusher's new assignment either?" she asked, a challenging tone in her voice.

"Kath, shouldn't we be going back to Voyager now?" Chakotay was trying to calm his wife down before she exploded, or her stress levels rose to quickly.

"Yes, thanks Chakotay. And we'd better be letting Ensigns Crusher's report for duty officially on Voyager, when we return." The pair turned to head trowards the yacht, but not before bidding the trio behind them goodbye.

"Bye Owen, I'll contact you from Voyager. And Ensigns, I look forward to meeting you officially on the ship. See you at 2200 for the crew meeting, then."

Owen, Isabella and Wesley stood watching Kathryn and Chakotay leave on thier private vessel for Voyager, each thinking a different thing. But, one common thought amongst the trio was how strong the command team were going to be for this mission, this next many years.

Liuentenant Commander Tom Paris had once again overdone himself on a new holodeck program to fit the whole crew in one room. As he, his wife and young daughter walked into the holodeck, Tom could hear B'Elanna gasp at the magnificence of this creation.

A long, rectangular table stood at the head of the room, enough seats for the senior staff to occupy and address the crew. Rows and rows of comfortable chairs had been set up for the crewmembers to occupy, ready to be seated wherever they pleased, in family or friend groups. Smaller chairs had been placed at the side for parents to place their younger children in, to avoid interruptions.

"Tom," B'Elanna gasped in the general direction of her husband. "Is this what you've been doing while I've been in Engineering this past month? The Captain will be so proud of you."

Paris smiled at his half-Klingon wife and quarter-Klingon daughter, glad they had some pride in him for something other than his piloting skills.

"What time is it?" he asked his wife. "It must be close to 2200, that's when the meeting starts, doesn't it?"

"Don't ask me, ask the computer, flyboy," she said jokingly, using the nickname Q had chirstened him over 5 years ago.

Tom sighed, his wife normally knew everything. "Computer, what is the time?" he asked, directing his voice up.

"The time is 2126 hours," the computer asked in it's feminine, emotionless voice.

"Crew should be starting to arrive soon," B'Elanna said. "We'd better sit down."

"Aunt Kafwyn, Unca Kotay?" Miral asked her parents, wondering where her godparents were.

"They'll be here soon, darling," Tom said. "Come on, lets go to the officer's table before anyone else gets here."

The happy family strode to the head of the room to take their seats, all happy to be back home.

The transported room was deserted except for the presence of one person, Voyager's new transporter chief, Lieutenant Shaun Murray. He was standing, obviously bored being one of the very few people on duty while the remainder of the crew were waiting in the holodeck.

As the Captain and Commander rematerialised on the transporter pad, Shaun managed to stifle a grin. It was nice to finally meet his commanding officers, and being the one to bring them back to their home was a true privelage.

"Good evening Captain, Commander," he greeted them individually. "Welcome home."

Janeway smiled, first at her husband, then at the Chief. "Thanks, Chief. It's good to be back. Why aren't you on the holodeck with everyone else. I thought we were the only ones allowed to be late."

Chief Murray laughed at the comment. "Yes, Captain, I should be on the holodeck. In fact, I'm just leaving for there now. Plus, I'm allowed to be late as well, since Paris and Torres entrusted me in your safe arrival. Should I tell them you're on your way now?"

Chief smiled at the married pair, also directing a warm look towards the Captain's swollen and pregnant stomach. He was glad the pair were happy, and a family of their own was something they definantly deserved.

"No Chief," Chakotay said. "I want to surprise them. You go ahead, we'll be there soon." he kindly dismissed the new crewmember, one who obviously wasn't intimidated by their presence.

Chief Murray walked briskly out of Transporter Room 2 towards holodeck 1 for the crew meeting, relieved the Captain and Commander had finally arrived.

Back in the transporter room, Kathryn and Chakotay stepped dowm off the pad, hand in hand, and walked, Kathryn waddled, towards the holodeck, as fast as Kath's swollen legs could carry her enlarged figure. This crew meeting was going to be eventful. Very eventful.

Heads turned to look and see who the newest arrivals to the meeting were, though it was obvious only the Captain and Commander were absent. Nevertheless, a collective gasp circulated the room as the command team stepped slowly onto the hologrid together, their happiness radiating off eachother.

"Nice of you to join us," came a cheeky voice from the front of the room. Tom Paris, a man of many mysteries, a man who never missed a chance to pay out the Captain.

"Well, Mr Paris," Kathryn said, a slight chuckle present in her voice. "Being Captain of this ship, I am allowed to be late." A wide grin errupted on her face, showing the crewmembers she was totally happy, for the moment.

"Yeah, but what's the Commander's excuse?" someone else asked, also from the officer's table. B'Elanna Torres was sitting next to her husband, a cheeky grin also on her face.

"Should I need a reason, B'Elanna," Chakotay started. "When I am married to the Captain?"

The entire congregation laughed at the look on Commander Torres's face at that comment. Clearly, she wasn't expecting that response.

meanwhile, while the drew were laughing at the Chief Engineer's expense, Janeway and Chakotay had managed to take their seats at the slightly raised officer's table infront of everyone.

"OK, settle down, settle down," Kathryn said, standing up to address her new crew. "I think Commander Torres now knows not to question us this mission around." She gave a forgiving look to B'Elanna, receiving a stern but humourful glare in return.

"OK everyone, time to discuss business," Captain Janeway had taken up her 'command stance', ready to brief her new crew. "As you all know, our mission has been postponed for a month with the installation of our new prototype transwarp engine drive. Now, thankfully, the installation has been finished, and the team from SCE, under the watchful eye of Commander Torres, have deemed the drive and our ship spaceworthy."

Everyone could see the Captain was ready to start one of her long speeches again.

"Get on with it!" a rather game crewmember called from somewhere in the corwd, only to be laughed at promptly.

"To my new crew, welcome," she started again. "To my old crew, welcome back." In the audience, a few familiar faces smiled back almost lovingly at theor Captain's address. "This ship, just like her namesake, will become our home for the next four years atleast, while we fulfill our diplomatic mission back to the Delta Quadrant, this time to scout species suitable for Federation membership."

A collective groan from crewmembers of the original Voyager could be heard by everyone. Not all personell were eager to return to the place they had been stranded in for seven years.

Commander Chakotay took over the spotlight from his wife, ready to address the crew in an official pretense.

"I know many of you are not looking forward to returning to the Delta Quadrant, but you will be glad to know we will be avoiding the Kazon as much as possible."

A slight cheer from original crew was heard, but the confused mutterings from new crew echoed the room. They obviously didn't know how bad the Kazon had been to Voyager.

Suddenly, the doors to enter the holodeck opened, interrupting the conversation. Everyone turned to look at the pair of very late crewmembers.

Kathryn Janeway stood up to look at them, instantly recognising her interruption.

"Mr and Mrs Crusher, nice of you to finally join us," she said, a sarcastic tone in her stern voice.

At the recognition of the name 'Crusher', the assembled crew once again turned to talk to eachother, whispering about another famous person on their new ship.

"Crusher?" asked Security Chief Marman. "As in Wesley Crusher, the one who grew up on the Enterprise-D?"

Marman, Paris and Torres all looked to the Captain and Commander expectantly, the 'tell me what's going on' look on their faces.

A hurriedly whispered "Don't worry" came their way from Chakotay, who had already stood to announce their news to the crew.

"Everyone," Chakotay started, hearing the congregation instantly quieten at his voice. "Lieutenant Wesley Crusher and his wife Ensign Isabella Crusher have been transferred to serve on Voyager after the destruction of the Titan. Until earlier tonight, we were not briefed on their new assignments, which are to be helm/engineering officer and nursery attendant respectively."

Chakotay sat down to let his wife take over the introduction. "Though we have no idea why a new nursery attendant and helm/engineering officer are needed, it is expected that everyone," Kathryn turned to look at a very squirmy Tom and B'Elanna, Chief Helm and Chief Engineering officers, "Accept their integration into the crew without any complaints."

Paris and Torres squirmed in their seats a little more, before it became so annoying the Captain had to interrupt them.

"Tom, B'Elanna" she started. "Can't you two sit still?"

A slight chuckle from the officers could be heard by the scolded pair, who grimaced at their informal reprimand.

"Sorry, Captain," Tom said. "But B'Elanna and I have something to tell you..." he trailed off, nudging his wife in the arm to confess her side of the story.

"Yes, ma'am. Um... We requested to have Wesley and Isabella transferred to Voyager."

The Chief Engineers confession slightly shocked the rest of the senior staff, who never expected her to go behind the Captain's back for anything. Their collective gasp startled Lt. Commander Torres, who had almost expected this reaction anyway.

"And why, may I ask," Janeway started, "Did you have Lieutenant and Ensign Crusher transferred to _my_ ship?"

Tom and B'elanna exchanged a silent look, as if they were doing a scissors, paper, rock game with their eyes to see who would break the news. B'Elanna won, so Tom had to confess their reasons.

"Well, Captain," the nervous Lt. Commander stopped himself from fidgeting in his seat to face her like a man. "Just after the crew left the ship for the transwaro installation, B'Elanna and I decided it was time to give our little girl a sibling," he was almost trembling under the Captain's highest level death glare.

"Since being an only child is not something I want Miral to experience," B'Elanna interjected.

"So, when we had our yearly physicals, shortly before the expected return of the crew, Doc told us B'Elanna was already three months pregnant. She's due about two months after you, late December this year."

The Captain was shocked, since quite a few reports of pregnant crewmembers had come to her attention the last few days of their shore leave. And the new baby Torres was expecting was not among those reports.

"And this explains the Crusher's reassignment how?" Chakotay asked, still unclear on how Wesley and Isabella were involved in this situation.

"Well," Tom started. "The Doctor also hinted this may be a difficult pregnancy, so I asked if someone with the qualities of both engineering and helm operation could be found in one person, someone we could both trust, so they could carry on our duties or special assignments if the need arises."

"And let me guess," Janeway said. "The extra nursery attendant couldn't be turned down, not with the reports of all the new pregnancies I have been alerted of recently."

"That's right," Paris said nervously. He really did not want to get in trouble more that night.

Before continuing the conversation, Kathryn noticed the rest of the crew were growing restless at the endless fight that seemed to be going on between the command staff.

"Sorry, everyone," she said, genuinely apologising for ignoring the needs of everyone else for the moment. "That's all we need to say for now. You all may return to your quarters, everyone if off duty tonight while the Utopia Planetia staff finish up with the ship and will stay in command tonight. I expect to see all of Alpha shift," stared at her senior officers, knowing they were all on that roster. "Ready to report for duty on time at 0700 tomorrow morning, when we will depart for the Delta Quadrant."

Cheers erupted from the bored crewmembers, who then stood to leave the holodeck to return to their quarters. It would take some time to unpack and decorate their living spaces.

Kathryn Janeway returned her attention from the junior staff to her senior staff, who knew her enough not to leave until she had told them to.

"Tom, B'Elannna, though I do not like the way you went behind my back, congratulations on the new addition to our large family," she looked genuine when she said that to the happy couple.

"Now, everyone can return to their quarters, and be on time for duty tomorrow morning, as we will be early," the lack of a cheeky grin on the Commander's face told them he was serious, and if they were later than them, a new betting pool will start. "Now scat!"

The senior staff rose from their seats and alsmost ran to the exit, cheerful grins on their faces. That first night home would be alot of fun.

Kathryn and Chakotay walked slowly, side by side, out of the holodeck and towards their new home in space. They had never truly felt comfortable on Earth, so Voyager had really become their home.

They were playfighting by the time they reached the holodeck doors, the Captain's swollen belly moving and dodging playful hits from the Commander's wild hands. Just before they exited, Chakotay turned around to say three words.

"Computer, end program."

The Bridge at 0630 the next morning was already bustling with activity. Though the Gamma shift was still officially on duty, they had given up their positions to the Alpha shift and were standing by to be officially relieved by the Captain.

The turbolift leading to the Bridge held only two passengers this particular morning, Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay. They were intentionally arriving at the Bridge 10 minutes late, just to see how annoyed Commanders Paris and Torres were.

Tom, B'Elanna, Harry, Scott, Abby and Annika were growing restless at their stations. The command team were already 10 minutes late, and every second after 0700 they were late would contribute to the new betting pool, slowly decreasing their new replicator rations. Tom Paris had already set up the topic, and that one would probably not be approved by the Commanding Officer.

Every person's attention turned to the turbolift doors as they opened at the rear of the Bridge, revealing the extremely late Janeway and Chakotay to the extremely early Bridge crew.

"Nice of you to finally show up," Paris said, his usual tongue-in-cheek humour amusing the hormonal woman. "Most of us have been here since 6:30, and now your replicator rations have very nicely fueled the bottom line of the new betting pool."

The entire congregation in the command centre, minus the two highest ranking officers, all laughed at the Chief Helm Officer's statement, and at his expense.

Janeway smiled warmly at the man she had liberated from a Federation penal colony over 8 years ago, then locked her 'Captain's face' firmly into place.

"OK, Gamma shift, stand down. Thank you for watching my ship, you can now return to drydock. Alpha shift," the command she barked at her senior staff and Bridge crew drew their sluping bodies to attention in their positions. "Report! Tactical!"

New officer Lieutenant Marman was the first to be picked on, in true Janeway fashion, just like her old friend Tuvok was.

"Ma'am, all decks and stations have reported condition blue, ready to depart drydock on schedule at 0800. All hatches and docking ports have been secured, just after the departure of the Utopia Planetia staff. We are ready to return to space."

A sigh of relief echoed through the Bridge, everyone was glad to be returnin to the one place they had comfortably called home for years.

"Thank you, Scott," Janeway looked at her new chief of security, a calm, warm look in her eyes. "Ops! Report!" she barked again, this time directing her command to Lieutenant Kim, a real veteran on her Bridge.

"Yes, Captain." Harry knew how much she hated the particular rule about addressing commanding officers. "The computer is working at full effieciency, all systems are at 100 per cent ad all crew have reported for duty. We are ready to depart drydock."

"Thanks, Harry. Conn! Report!"

Tom Paris turned around to guve the Captain a goofy smile. "All engines are powered and ready to go, transwarp drives are ready to be engaged. We are ready to head home."

Tom's final comment made the original crew let out a small cheer. They were returning to the place they had felt the most comfortable, the least judged, the place they truly called home.

"Tom, thanks for that, but next time, keep your comments to the holodeck." The Bridge crew once again laughed at the expense of the Conn officer. "Engineering! Report!"

The Chief Engineer stood at the engineering console to the side of the command deck, near to the ready room doors. "Captain, all engines and warp drives have been secured and been given the go for departure." B'Elanna had a huge grin on her face, as she too was returning to the one place she had been happy. "Kathryn, we're ready to go home."

Kathryn looked her senior staff in the eyes individually. First, her husband, her very reason for existence, then every other person she had come to trust with her life while on Voyager, plus the new people who had yet to prove their emotions.

While giggling like a schoolgirl, Janeway strode purposefully and confidently as fast as her body could handle towards her new command chair, the very chair which had been calling her name since the ship's commission. The entire Bridge crew smiled as their mentor, friend and commanding officer finally sat down in her chair, the one that truly belonged to her.

Smiling warmly at the assembled officers and crew, Kathryn Janeway gave the order the whole ship had been waiting for.

"Mr Marman, release final docking clamps. Mr Paris, take us out."

The crew of the USS Voyager-A were finally back underway.


	5. Coming Home

**Disclaimer: No matter how much we kick, scream, cry or throw temper tantrums, Voyager _still_ belongs to Paramount, as do all the characters, except for the ones I invented, whom you will meet later. In other words, Paramount is too lazy to make a movie, so l think it is out duty as fans to play with them, manipulate them and speculate what _should_ happen after Endgame.**

The Offical Mission Chapter 5 - Coming Home

The six week journey returning to the Delta Quadrant at maximum slipstream was uneventful, in the standards of the original Voyager crewmembers. For the new staff, they saw the bypassing of nebula after nebula, encounters with semi-hostile aliens and debilitating asteroid fields as exciting, even part of a normal mission, one they had been briefed on or participated in prior to their assignments on the new Voyager.

Luckliy, Kathryn Janeway was handling her first pregnancy extremely well, considering heavily pregnant women were not supposed to be commanding starships or participating in deep-space diplomatic assignments. So far, she had avoided serious injury, confinement to Sickbay or quarters and arguements with senior staff members over her condition.

This particular day in the outskirts of the Delta Quadrant was not unusual to the days the original crew had dealt with for seven consecutive years.

Captain Kathryn Janeway, six and a half months pregnant, strode on to her Bridge with a purposeful gait.

"Captain on the Bridge!" called a very familiar voice. Lieutenant Commander Tom Paris stood up from the command chair in the centre of the room.

Kathryn smiled warmly at everyone, first at the man in charge of the Bridge during her absence, then at each individual person staffing the stations around her. "As you were," she said, before stepping out of her ready room, and heading towards her surrogate son, the man she had adopted into her family long before she married or he had a child. "Report, Mr Paris."

"Ma'am, we're due to cross the border into the Delta Quadrant within the hour. I was just about to call the senior staff to the Bridge for the Alpha shift." Seeing the warm look on his CO's face, Tom quickly changed his mind. "But, I think you can do the honours. You have the Bridge."

Stepping down from the Captain's chair to the First Officer's, Paris admired the older woman's form and grace. Being pregnant had been hard on her, as it was hard on B'Elanna both times round. Fortunately, his half-Klingon wife was handling her unborn child with grace and expertise, much easier than she had with Miral.

Tom's thoughts were interrupted by Kathryn's strong feminine voice calling over the comm system. "All senior officers, please report to the Bridge."

The Alpha shift just beginning, Janeway watched as each member if her senior staff, apart from her pilot, arrived at their stations to begin the bustling morning.

As soon as Counsellor Peters took her seat, being the last one to arrive, Janeway stood up to address the assembled people.

"Everyone, today marks a very important milestone in our personal history, the day we return to the place we have felt the most at home, where many romances developed and some children were even born, if not concieved." Kathryn looked at Tom and B'Elanna, giving the stern impression about Miral, thier oldest daughter. Everyone laughed at their expense, thus lightening the heavy atmosphere encompassing them.

"Our return to the Delta Quadrant, the past the outskirts of Federation space, gives us an opportunity to bring new races into our wide Federation family, chances fr more first contact situations for all, and reunitements with old friends, not to mention the many enemies we accumulated over seven years. The Delta Quadrant was our home, so to all the new crew, if you would consider it yours too, it is something no one will ever forget."

A round of applause followed the captain's speech, a sign of true appreciation and admiration of their commanding officer.

Kathryn shared a look with Chakotay, then turned to share a look with the counsellor. Receiving a shrug in return, Kathryn obviously couldn't count on her counsellor for support in family matters.

"Sir, we are crossing over into the Delta Quadrant now," Lieutenant Marman called from tactical, directly behind her.

Paris, Torres and Kim shared a groan and felt sorry for the new security chief. Even they knew Kathryn hated that particular protocol.

"Mr Marman, do you know exactly how much I hate being called 'sir'?" Janeway turned to look at the newest addition to her family. "Had you have done that more than once if you served with me in the Delta Quadrant for seven years, Tom and B'Elanna would no longer be the main recipients of death glares and payback."

Grimacing, Scott finally understood. "Yes, Ma'am. Sorry Ma'am," he said. "We have just entered the Delta Quadrant, en route to the Talaxian mining colony."

A collective cheer echoed throughout the Bridge, and most likely throughout the rest of the ship, too.

"Settle down, settle down," Kathryn laughed, a huge smile on her face. "Everyone, return to your stations, we'll be in comm range of Neelix and Dexa in a matter of hours. Until then, Alpha shift has just started, so I suggest we settle down for duty. I'm sure Annika will wake us up at 0200 when we can talk to our Talaxian friend."

"I'm sure the moment we come into range of the Talaxian mining colony, everyone on the ship in line to talk to Neelix will be woken, though I haven't chosen my way of mass awakenings yet."

"Whatever you do, don't call for a red alert!" Harry called, unknowingly giving her the ammunition to wake the staff.

"Oh, I'm sure she will, Harry. That's why she loves you so much," B'Elanna shot back, hanging off her husband's strong form for support.

"That's enough children," Chakotay jested. "How about we return to duty, and argue about comm time with Neelix after we yell at Annika for waking us up in the middle of the night."

"Yes, Daddy," Tom answered in a child-like voice, before quickly kissing his wife and promptly plomping his behind in the pilot's chair.

"OK, everyone, return to your stations and get back to work. I'm sure Mr Paris and Mr Kim are eager for their shift to finish so they can plan our homecoming slash welcome Neelix party," the evil grin on the CO's face gave Tom and Harry something other than their women to think about for after their shift.

"Full holodeck use, Kathryn?" Harry asked.

"Of course, but on one condition. The theme is formal. Very formal, but ranks at the door."

"Not a problem," Harry and Tom said in unison, before turning back to their respective stations and continuing their work.

"You have no idea what you just got yourself into," Chakotay whispered to his wife.

"Of that I am sure," she whispered back, the mischievious grin still plastered on her face.

0200 arrived all too quickly for Kathryn. Being pregnant almost drove her to the point of becoming an insomniac, something drugs could not cure, even if she wanted them. At the time Annika Hansen set off her fake Red Alert, Janeway had just entered REM sleep. Disturbing a pregnant woman from sleep is usually not something someone would like to do, but when you are ex-Borg, even the captain's enraged state can't scare you at 2 in the morning.

Trudging sleepily onto the Bridge, a large hot chocolate in her hand, Janeway proceeded to her command chair, attempting to wipe the look of intense fatigue off her face.

"Report," she barked tiredly, unsuccessfully trying to conceal a large yawn.

"Captain, we have established contact with the Talaxian mining colony, and Neelix is waiting to speak to you," came the slightly emotional voice of Ensign Annika Hansen, alias Seven of Nine, from the Ops station in front of her. Obviously Harry hadn't yet managed to drag his tired arse to the Bridge.

"Computer, stand down Red Alert," Kathryn called into thin air, desperately wanting the klaxons to stop buzzing. As soon as they did, she made another call, "All senior officers report to the Bridge."

As the turbolift doors opened behind her and the remaining senior officers stepped onto the Bridge, most of them still yawning or rubbing sleep out of their eyes, Kathryn turned to Ensign Hansen at Ops.

"Annika, hail New Talax, it's time to talk to our old friend."

"Lieutenant Wildman, please wake your daughter and report to the Bridge," Commander Chakotay called over the comm link, knowing the child would like to see her godfather.

Just before the comm link opened, Kathryn turned to look at her party coordinators, a sleepy grin on her face. "Tom, Harry, you do know that party is expected to be underway by 1800 hours on Wednesday night, right?"

The pair looked at eachother. "What? It's Monday morning!" Paris said, his voice slightly raised.

The comm link to the Talaxian colony opened at that moment, preventing the two men from saying any more on the subject.

"Greetings, Captain Janeway and Voyager!" Neelix called from his side of the link.

"NEELIX!" Everyone screamed, but no one as loud as Naomi Wildman, who had just stepped onto the Bridge with her mother.


	6. Party Time

**Disclaimer: No matter how much we kick, scream, cry or throw temper tantrums, Voyager _still_ belongs to Paramount, as do all the characters, except for the ones I invented, whom you will meet later. In other words, Paramount is too lazy to make a movie, so l think it is out duty as fans to play with them, manipulate them and speculate what _should_ happen after Endgame.**

**Hey all, sorry I have taken so long to update, but school has been hectic, and I was in the middle of a large pile of assignments. Anyway, now I am on school holidays for two weeks, so I am hoping to have this story finished by 10 October, and also before I leave on my week-long holiday to Vanuatu! Hope to hear lots and lots of reviews, this story has 4 chapters left after this, plus an Epilogue, so I'll be busy!

* * *

The Official Mission Chapter 6 - Party Time**

The holodeck of the USS Voyager was looking more and more like it had under Neelix's reign every hour as Kathryn Janeway checked on the location for the reception that night.

The seventh and final time she came to visit the holodeck at 1730 hours, Tom Paris, Harry Kim and B'Elanna Torres had just finished programming the final decorations and were proceeding to pack up their equipment.

At six and a half months pregnant, it was a safety risk for Kathryn to be climbing everywhere, so decorating their ballroom was strictly off limits to the commanding officer.

"Captain!" Tom Paris had finally noticed Kathryn's presence in the very-colourful ballroom venue. "Nice of you to finally join us!"

Kathryn chuckled at the look on Tom's face when he heard her response. "Well, Mr Paris, the Captain's allowed to be late, especially one as pregnant as I am. But, then again, you can't really trust a man to understand something like that, can you, B'Elanna?"

B'Elanna shared her best friend's chuckle, which quickly turned into a laugh at the look on both Harry and Tom's faces.

Before anyone had a chance to respond to the Captain's challenge for an entertaining argument, an internal communicator beeped, interrupting the flow.

"Bridge to Captain Janeway," Lieutenant Marman's fresh, eager voice echoed throughout the room over the comm channel.

Sighing, Kathryn tapped the small comm badge attached to her chest. "Yes Scott, what is it?" she asked tiredly. Technically, Kathryn was two weeks off being put on restricted duties due to her troublesome pregnancy.

"Captain, the Talaxians have requested permission to start beaming aboard for the party in Holodeck One. A (slight pause) Mr Neelix (pauses again) has asked to be the first to beam over with his wife and children." Kathryn chuckled at his misinterpretation of Neelix's importance and insistence. "Ma'am, he's _insisting_ to be beamed over first to approve the venue."

Kathryn, B'Elanna, Tom and Harry laughed at Scott Marman's fear of the Talaxian. "Just make sure he has no Leola root with him, Scott, then beam him and his family over."

"Leola root, ma'am?" Scott asked, clearly confused.

"Never mind, Scott, just beam them over," B'Elanna barely managed to say, as the other three were doubled over laughing.

"Yes, Scott, you do that," Kathryn said, still trying to avoid laughing again.

"Yes, Captain," Lieutenant Marman sighed, still not understanding entirely what they were laughing about, and still confused about this Neelix person. "Coordinates have been received, transport in five minutes. Bridge out."

"Come on you lot," Kathryn said, picking herself up off the floor. "Let's go see how Neelix and Dexa are."

As the foursome waltzed gracefully out of the holodeck, Kathryn Janeway tapped her comm badge. "All senior officers, please report to transporter room one."

* * *

Chakotay and Annika were already in the room, as were Scott and Abigail, by the time Kathryn, B'Elanna, Tom and Harry entered the transporter room, still laughing at something, most probably to do with Tom.

"Energise," Chakotay said, just after the Captain and her entourage had stopped beside him and Annika.

The late four managed to control their emotions as a familiar blue transporter beam brought four figures from the Talaxian Mining Colony to the USS Voyager-A.

"Neelix!" Kathryn greeted with a genuine smile and hug. "It is so great to see you! And you too Dexa!"

Neelix, Dexa and Brax stepped down off the transporter deck to greet the assembled senior staff - their old friends.

"You too, Captain!" Neelix replied, hugging Kathryn. Turning to Chakotay, the Talaxian hugged the large man too. "And of course I am glad to see you, Commander."

Chakotay hugged the old Ambassador in return, but looked to Kathryn with a slightly confused look on his face. The pair had certainly had their own fair share of disagreements during Neelix's time on the original Voyager.

Turning to Tom and B'Elanna, Neelix smiled as he recognised their extra rank pips. "Well, Lieutenant _Commanders_ now?" he asked, smiling broadly. "I must say, you two have definitely earned it."

Tom and B'Elanna shared an embarrassed smile at the comment, each subconsciously fingering the aforementioned rank pips. "Well, after seven years of dedicated service, you'd better hope we'd get promoted," Tom said, smiling cheekily.

"Have you forgotten about me Neelix?" Harry asked, drawing attention to himself. "You know, good ol' _Lieutenant_ Kim?"

Neelix turned to look at Harry, and noticed the extra pip on the Operations Officer's collar. "Harry! You've been promoted too!"

Smiling and nodding, Harry embraced his alien friend in a warm hug.

A coughing sound from behind the reunited friends drew everyone's attention from their returned friend to the other occupants of the large transporter room.

Kathryn, Chakotay and the rest of the senior staff, plus Neelix and his family, turned to the unfamiliar faces at the back of the room.

"Ah, who are they?" Neelix asked quietly, a confused look on his face. "And where is Mr Vulcan?"

Kathryn smiled again, and turned to make some introductions. "Mr Neelix," Janeway said, indicating Security Chief Marman and Counsellor Peters. "This is our new security chief, Lieutenant Scott Marman, who replaced Tuvok after he retired to teach at the Academy; and this is Lieutenant Commander Abigail Peters, our ship's counsellor."

Neelix looked around, studying the new crew's faces.

"What, are you scared of something, Neelix?" B'Elanna asked, drawing Neelix's attention away from the new crewmembers and back to them.

"Oh, you know me, too curious for my own good," Neelix commented. "But what about this party we came here for?"

* * *

The party was in full swing by the time Neelix, his family and the senior officers reached the entrance to the joined holodecks for the 'Welcome Home' party organised by Harry, Tom and B'Elanna.

"Nice of you to finally join us, _Mr Ambassador_…"

The music stopped as everyone turned to look at the new arrivals, their faces automatically breaking out in smiles at the sight of a very old friend walking across the floor.

Neelix, Kathryn and the other staff looked around for the voice addressing the honoured guest.

"It's good to see you again, Neelix," the voice repeated.

Kathryn recognised the voice. "Kes?" she inquired, having not seen the young Ocampan for three years.

The young woman stepped out of the shadows, smiling widely, with a young girl holding her hand. Ocampa had obviously been good to the young woman, as her long red hair still trailed down her back, and her face glowed with maturity and motherhood.

"Hello, Kathryn," she said calmly, stepping into an embrace with her old captain and friend.

"Hello again, Neelix," she said, hugging him warmly. "I see you have been busy lately."

A collective chuckle echoed throughout the crowd, followed by Kes' easy laugh.

Her familiar laugh made the whole group of people settle down, easing the built up tension in the room. "How about we get back to this wonderful party you have organised and catch up later," she suggested.

"Hear, hear!" Tom called, and others laughed with him, echoing his cheers.

As the music started up again, couples and groups of people moved to the dance floor to dance in time with the fast-paced waltzing music.

"Are you going to join us, Kathryn?" B'Elanna called from her place on the floor, where she had dragged an unsuspecting Tom to dance. B'Elanna may have been pregnant, but with her only being five months gone, she had the luxury of being able to dance without worry of inducing labour.

"No, I'm all right, B'Elanna," the seven-month-pregnant Kathryn replied, content in the spot where she was standing, with Chakotay almost permanently attached to her side. "Plus, I don't think the _old man_ would let me dance, not this close to my due date."

B'Elanna laughed as she and Tom started dancing gracefully with the music, leaving a content Kathryn on the sidelines, watching her crew enjoying themselves for once.

* * *

At 2230, the party was still running strong. Neelix, Dexa and Brax were having the time of their lives on the dance floor, and the formality of the outfits was very pleasing to the eye.

Suddenly, in the middle of a dance involving all married couples, a new yet familiar voice echoed throughout the ballroom.

"Attention everyone," came the sweet yet commanding voice of Counsellor Peters. "My name is Lieutenant Commander Abigail Peters, ship's counsellor. Though we have been on this mission for some time now, most of you still do not know me, but you do know most of your senior officers, especially those from the original Voyager who served with or under them. Today, it has been my honour, and my pleasure, to be introduced to one of Captain Janeway's first Delta Quadrant friends, and official Delta Quadrant Ambassador for Starfleet, Mr Neelix!"

A cheer erupted from the silent crowd. It had taken guts to stand up there and address the crew in that manner, but to officially welcome home an old family member was very courageous.

"And," Abigail continued. "I would like to propose a toast." She stopped to see the formal gown-clad female population and tuxedo-clad male population rase their champagne flutes for the forthcoming toast. "I may not have been a member of this crew from the start, but after these past few weeks, I feel even more liked than I have in my entire life, mostly because of Captain Kathryn Janeway, and for that I would like to offer my sincerest thanks. To me, she is the one thing that must have kept Voyager together on her original journey home, and even now, she still continues to unite our crew together. So, please raise your glasses, for Kathryn Janeway, may you and your children be graced with long and happy lives, filled with love and friendship, because without it, you would never have survive the first trip. To Kathryn Janeway…"

"To Kathryn Janeway…" the crew added, with the Captain's closest friends shedding tears in response to the lovely speech.

"May her kindness, philosophy and legacy live on forever," Kes added, emptying her own flute.

Counsellor Peters stepped down from her position on the stage, and headed over to the woman she had just given the toast to.

"Abigail, that was lovely," Kathryn Janeway spoke to her Betazoid counsellor. Unlike the talents of Deanna Troi's infamous mother, Lwaxanna Troi, Abigail Peters was only partially telepathic, but just psi-sensitive enough to benefit the wellbeing of the crew.

The young woman blushed at the praise she received from her commanding officer. "Thank you ma'am, the toast just seemed appropriate. And, you can call me Abby. I never really liked Abigail in the first place."

Kathryn smiled at the comment on her name, before turning to Chakotay. "Well, sir," she said, moving the emerald green material around on her swollen, pregnant belly. "May I have this dance?"

* * *

At 0900 hours the next morning, most of the senior staff were trying to tiredly drag themselves to the observation lounge just off the bridge for their daily meeting.

"Whoever's idea it was to have meetings so early in the morning, I am going to seriously injure," B'Elanna said, dropping her pregnant form into the chief engineer's chair, slowly rubbing the sleep from her eyes and trying to hide a yawn.

"Just because you did not go to sleep until almost 0600 this morning doesn't mean you should take it out on us, Maquis," Harry muttered, using an eight year old nickname for her.

"Well Starfleet, you don't look much better than I feel," B'Elanna shot back, raising her Klingon cranial ridges off the table. "I…"

The Chief Engineer had to stop her tired conversation with the Ops officer as the doors opened, allowing Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay to enter the lounge.

"Good morning everyone," Janeway said with a smile, trying to meet each of their eyes in a friendly glance.

Receiving only looks of intense sleep deprivation, Kathryn gave up.

"Well, I see you all got about as much sleep as we did," Chakotay said, also trying to wipe the sleep from his eyes.

"But we still have to attend the Talaxian party tonight at 1700, so don't wear yourselves out while on duty," Kathryn reminded them with a smile.

"In other words, don't work too hard," B'Elanna said smiling as she led everyone out the door. "We know, Kathryn."

* * *

Kathryn, Chakotay, Tom, B'Elanna, Harry and Annika met in the transporter room at 1645, ready to beam over to the Talaxian colony for the party.

"Did you have a hard day at work?" Kathryn asked in a sweet voice, watching B'Elanna yawn into the sleeve of her dress uniform. The mocking tone brought a smile to everyone's face, putting them into party mood for the second day in a row.

"Captain, they are ready to receive you now," came the voice of Chief Murray from the transporter console.

"Well then, Chief," Kathryn said with a smile. "Energise."

* * *

The Talaxians were sitting around a large table when the command staff transported into the middle of their mining colony.

"Hello again, Captain," Lorjam, their leader greeted. "Welcome back to our home!"

Immediately, the assemble Talaxians rose from their positions at the table to greet their friends. They burst out in applause, and gave the six visitors enough reason to smile again.

* * *

The celebration hall echoed of old dance music, mainly from Zephram Cochrane's era, but everyone enjoyed it nonetheless.

It was only 2200 hours by the time Kathryn, Chakotay, Tom and B'Elanna departed the dance floor for the guest of honour table, sitting with Neelix, his family and the Talaxian leaders.

"Having a good time, Kathryn?" Neelix asked, noticing she had sat down, looking very tired.

"Great party Neelix," she managed to say, before grabbing her pregnant abdomen suddenly. "Oh no."

Being a medic, Tom noticed the signs Kathryn was exhibiting. "Kathryn, was that a contraction?" he asked.

"Too soon, too soon," she muttered, before starting to breathe heavily, screaming in pain.

Tom knew exactly what to do. Tapping his comm badge, Tom called Voyager.

"Paris to Voyager. Medical Emergency, four to beam directly to sick bay."

Neelix looked at the medic, who could only say a few words before the transporter beam took a hold of them.

"Sorry, Neelix. Kathryn's gone into premature labour."

Before anyone could respond, they were gone.


End file.
